Full Mask shaping

[Tiny]

So I won a red fox mask pouch on ebay. I saw it and bid its entry and left it at that figuring i would eventually be out bid. well I won and its arrived its too small to use as a sporran but the face is in ok condition all be it very flat. I was wondering what would be needed to reshap the face to be acceptable as the top flap for a full mask sporran? thinking about buying a fur sporran with leather flap and then just swapping them out as the occasion dictates.

[artificer]

You might want to post pix to give us a better idea of what you're working with, but for shaping fur-on skins the basic procedure is below.

Lightly dampen the skin side of the hide. Repeat until it is soft. Once softened, the hide is moulded onto a form to help hold the proper shape. Eye hole and ears are tweaked into proper shape. Allow to dry.

Once dried, you can make a permanent form for the mask using any number of materials. There is an artist-quality paper pulp that dries VERY hard and is quite light. The name escapes me for the moment.

When shaping the face and head-form, you'll probably find it helpful to reference photos of the animal in life, although in most cases you'll want the mask to be mounted flatter than a traditional taxidermist would do, as you're not trying (in most cases) to make it look like it's alive, but just to retain semblance of it's original form.

Taxidermy eyes can be had quite cheaply online, although people's opinions on masks with or without eyes vary widely.

I'm by no means an expert taxidermist, I'm just experimenting with masks myself right now. There are others on this board who have made several full masks. A quick forum search for "full mask" will reveal a great number of results.

[ThistleDown]

This badger was shaped using papier mache. The lower jaw was not used and the upper face slightly flattened. Even so, it's a bulky piece.

[Tiny]

Well I removed the face from the pouch it came on. it was glued to a flap of leather. It came off with out much fiddling. I've been wetting it and shaping it. The ears are looking much better, though I think I need to look at more mask fox sporrans to really see what I should be doing with them. One bit I'm fighting with is the nose its very hard/flat so I cant really round that section of the mask yet. I'll just keep wetting the skin at and around the nose to soften it up some more.

I'm up in the air about eyes for this one. the Face is a red fox and as such seems to have a great deal of detail so it doesn't need eyes open. I'm not really sure how to go about closing the eyes do I just sew them shut?

My goal is to have a full mask sporran by burns night this year. Its my first time going and its one piece of kit I'd like to have the personal touch added.

[artificer]

Good progress, Tiny.

Two tips I've heard,

1) you might want to lay the ears flat back, or at least well back of what they might be in life. As they dry back out they can get brittle. You don't want to crack or snap one off while wearing the finished piece.

2) for the nose, you may have to soak the front part of the face in water for a few hours. Do as little as of the face as you can (just stick the muzzle in water). Make sure to dry it asap. Fur that stays wet too long can slip (ie slide off leaving a bare spot).

Keep us posted, and remember "Pix, or it didn't happen"

[longhuntr74]

This badger was shaped using papier mache. The lower jaw was not used and the upper face slightly flattened. Even so, it's a bulky piece.

Rex...that is a beautiful piece...and a high quality strap as well...I've got one of those on my wish list.

[Tiny]

This is how my fox looks so far. its been a struggle as the glue the PO had applied to the back to attach it to the last bag has made shaping very hard. Particularly the ears and nose seem to have been gummed up a bit. I'm going to keep working with it but I just won auctions for full skunk and badger pelts that will most likely be shapped and crafted into a formal and all around pair of sporrans.